theinbetweenismine

just a girl living the expat life

Archives for January 2021

Currently | January

filed under: currently

 

FEELING | cautiously hopeful for the future of this country. Watching the inauguration last week and seeing sane tweets from our new president (and his press secretary) in the last few days make my heart so calm and happy.

LISTENING TO | the rain storm that finally came through the valley last night (thankfully, no damage around here and not power outages in our neighborhood, but more rain to come the next few days!).

ENJOYING | our beautiful California January skies. (We desperately need more rain, but of course, I’ll take a blue sky when I can.)

LOVING | our fake TV-fireplace a little bit too much.

WATCHING | Schitt’s Creek. You guys, we finally started watching this show. I know we’re way late (as we are with most shows, if we get around to watching any shows at all), but so far, we’re enjoying it. I mean, it’s funny. I am not sure I am getting the hype yet, but I am willing to give it a little more time.

READING | A promised land by Barack Obama. Man, he’s a good writer (which doesn’t surprise me). But this book is dense. I am not getting through it as fast as I was expecting, but it’s utterly fascinating.

EATING | a warm, steaming bowl of steel-cut oatmeal for breakfast (most days).

DRINKING | (pots of) camomile-lavender tea. 

LEARNING | to appreciate some of the Peloton yoga and (sleep) meditation content. I am usually not someone who can relax and “do nothing” easily, but these shorter classes have given me an appreciation for just being “still” for a little while.

(super) EXCITED | about my Peloton Century Club t-shirt that I received in the mail this month. I’ve been using the Peloton app since August of 2020 and everyone, even the app users, get a Century Club shirt when they reach 100 workouts in any one category (it was “rides” for me, closely followed by strength classes).

MISSING | a more regular running routine. I currently only run once (sometimes twice) a week outdoors and I am looking forward to early morning runs again when the sun rises earlier and it is light out before I start work.

BUYING | coffee filters for $20. Ugh. Who’s been hogging all the Chemex coffee filters? I’ve been trying to get them for a few weeks now and finally had to order them online for a steep price because they were out of stock everywhere. What’s up with that?

WEARING | sweatpants and hoodies. Don’t tell me you are actually getting dressed these days.

What is up with currently?

Recipe | Our green dinner: whole grain linguine with walnut-spinach-pesto

filed under: recipe

 

If you’re like me, you frequently forget how delicious pesto is and how quick and easy it is to make at home. I am here to remind you because we’re recently “re-discovered” pesto for our meal planning. It’s a tasty, vegetarian dish that you can whip up in no time.

We like to add a side of veggies whenever we can and we call this our “green dinner” because we often add a green vegetable – broccoli – as a side dish. You can of course pick something else if you’d like. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 lb whole wheat pasta (cooked per instruction)
  • 3 cups spinach 
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/3 cup walnuts
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 2 tbsps grated parmesan cheese
  • ½  tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper

Cook the pasta according to package instructions.

Meanwhile, add the spinach, garlic, pine nuts, cheese, salt, and pepper to a food processor or blender and pulse until well combined.

Add the olive oil, lemon juice, and more salt and pepper to taste and blend until smooth.

Toss with the linguine – or your favorite pasta – until everything is evenly coated.

Serve with a side of broccoli for an extra green dinner.

Whole grain linguine with walnut-spinach-pesto

  • 1 lb whole grain pasta
  • 3 cups spinach
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/3 cup walnut pieces
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsps parmesan (grated)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

  1. Boil the pasta per package instruction.

  2. Meanwhile, add the spinach, garlic, pine nuts, cheese, salt, and pepper to a food processor or blender and pulse until well combined.

  3. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, and more salt and pepper to taste and blend until smooth.

    Toss with the linguine – or your favorite pasta – until everything is evenly coated.

  4. Serve with a side of broccoli for an extra green dinner.

Linking up with Deborah for Meatless Monday.

Confessions of a Mother Runner

Five Things Friday Vol. 20 – The Inauguration edition

filed under: Friday Five, politics

Five Things Friday: just five things I’m thinking about or things that made my week, or things that I otherwise feel like sharing.

I was on my bi-weekly grocery run this morning and listened to NPR (as I usually do in the car) and heard “President Biden” a few times in the conversations. I cannot explain how much it startled and at the same time relieved me to hear his name and realize all over that, yes, we have a good, decent man in the White House again. Phew! It’s also nice to hear that he’s getting right to work. Want to take any bets on how many golfing days he’ll take? (Ha!)

*  *  * 

This has been a great and also exhausting week. I was so on edge because of the Inauguration on Wednesday, but then everything just turned out beautifully: no more riots, a moving swearing-in of the new president, and his madam vice president, and an amazing “Celebrating America” show. Whoever put that together did a fantastic job.

Part of me felt sad for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for not having a huge crowd welcoming them in Washington, but I realized this virtual celebration felt so much more inclusive for everyone around the country than watching a broadcast of the typical Inauguration Day Ball. The flags on the National Mall were beautiful. The fireworks were spectacular, and the 400 Covid-19 Memorial Lights around the Reflecting Pool set the right backdrop for (some of) the absolutely stunning musical performances.

*  *  * 

If you didn’t watch the inauguration ceremony on Wednesday (why the hell not???), you also missed out on the beautiful poem by Amanda Gorman and you need to remedy that. You need to see this. (Oh, and the Bernie Sanders memes, of course, while you’re at it.)

*  *  * 

I also started listening to the daily (!) press briefings again yesterday and I didn’t expect it to be so freakin’ refreshing to see someone up at the podium who is willing to communicate with the public (and the media) without spewing lies, untruths, and calling everyone names. Who knew!

*  *  *

While, no, not everything is miraculously better today than it was a few days ago, I do feel like we can all breathe a little lighter and that we can start moving things in the right direction again. It’s up to all of us to continue to work for progress and make a difference. 

Tell me, how did you experience the last few days?  And also, have a great weekend!

 

Tuesday Topics | What I learned about myself during the pandemic

filed under: about me, Tuesday Topics

This week, I am linking up with  Kookyrunner and Zenaida  for Tuesday Topics and we’re talking about what I learned about myself during the pandemic.

Uh, we’re going deep, guys. I am sure the last 11 months have revealed some surprising – and maybe not so surprising – things about ourselves. 

I am a homebody, but I still miss going out.

Quarantine has been relatively easy for me. I love being at home. I am not somebody who has to be out and about all the time, but I do miss the freedom to decide to go somewhere or meet with someone whenever I want.

It takes me a long time to get bored at home.

As in, I have not gotten remotely bored during the restrictions. This is not to say that I haven’t been paralyzed (here and there) by the news – COVID- and politics-related – or that I don’t wish I could do things outside our home, but I have never been someone who goes stir crazy when stuck at home. I always find lots of fun and/or practical things I can fill my time with.

Two-week meal plans are just as easy as one-week meal plans.

I used to meal plan for one week and shop once a week. When the stay-at-home order hit, we decided to minimize the times we wanted to leave home and expose ourselves to the virus and switched to a bi-weekly shopping schedule. The big American fridges (ours is actually on the smaller side – ha!) can just about hold enough groceries for two weeks and it’s been working out great. I don’t know if I’ll ever go back to shopping weekly. 

I am adaptable.

Well, that’s not really something new I learned about myself. I knew that I am able to adapt to new situations, but I am surprised how little discomfort it has caused me. I had days in the beginning (and still now sometimes) where I felt tired and drained by *everything*  that was going on, but it was more the mental aspect of the unknown and not so much the physical aspect of our new situation. 

I can be very judgmental.

I usually go by the motto “live and let live” and don’t really care about how other people live their lives, but I realized that during the pandemic, I am pretty judgmental when I see people not abide by the rules: social distancing, mask wearing, not gathering in groups, all that good stuff. It seems so easy to me to do these things to keep everyone as safe as possible.

We’re in this mess that we’re in because people feel that they can just go about their damn day without considering other people around them, and while I know that I only have control about what I personally decide to do (or not do), it upsets me that we’re having this uphill battle (for months now!) because people don’t listen to the scientists. People complain about the stay at home orders and restrictions, but what it comes down to is personal responsibility and I think we could be in a better spot if people could sit tight for a little while and don’t insist on traveling and eating out and gathering in groups during a pandemic.

I really like working from home.

I never thought that this was something I wanted to do, but working from home has “slowed down” my everyday life considerably, and I kinda like that. I am not rushing out the door early in the morning. I’ve enjoyed going for early morning runs (or just hop on my spin bike) and then be able to shower and just plop down in front of the computer, instead of getting all ready and grab all my stuff to head to the office (and I don’t even have a long commute!).

I don’t *think* I am saying that I’d want to work from home forever, but a part-time work-from-home schedule would be nice.

What have you learned about yourself during the pandemic?

January Link List

filed under: link love

linklist

Around the Interwebs

Turns out it’s pretty good waking up early. “There was so much day ahead of me! So many hours to be alive. […] I felt like I had already lived an entire day only to have another one sprawling before me.”

In case you were wondering (as I was). What’s it really like to live in Washingon, D.C. right now.

Lifehacks! Some of these are genius!

Haha. A course syllabus for making new friends as an adult.

The Other Talk. “The first thing people see when they look at you is your skin color. People will look at your skin and all they will see is black. It doesn’t matter what you accomplish in life. If you become a doctor, a lawyer, a movie star — they will look at you, and the first thing they will see is your blackness.”

The most instagrammed National Parks

9 ways to improve your gut health.

12 signs you’re forcing a relationship that just isn’t right. Every couple on “90-days fiancé” right now. Haha.

The Capitol rioters weren’t ‘low class’. 

Around the blogosphere

My friend Mikael asked (and wrote): What’s the word for 2020 – Bravery! 

Justice before Unity!

My Trader Joe’s Favorites. I always love to hear what other people buy – and love – from Trader Joe’s! 

Common courtesy and social engagement. I couldn’t agree more.

Craftiness/DIY

The Ridgeline Cardigan. One of these days, I am going to knit a piece of clothing.

For my runner friends

Are you a morning person? Here’s how to motivate yourself to work out in the morning.

Top Peloton Facebook Groups you want to be part of. Nice round-up of supportive FB groups by Debora.

Deliciousness

Mushrooms stew with farro and kale. Gimme!

Tuscan-style beef lentil soup. So good!

I miss Müslibrötchen (rolls with oats, nuts, and raisins) and want to try these next.

Share a good link with me in the comments!